Religion
• Editor’s note: “Spiritual leaders answer” is a weekly column inviting Kaua‘i’s religious and spiritual leaders to share their doctrine’s perspective on a suggested subject. Every Friday a topic is printed inviting a response. Submissions are edited for content and length. Thoughts or suggestions for future topics are always welcome. Next week’s topic is diversity. The topic at the end of the column is for the following week.
Mark Randolph
Gateway Ministries
Mercy. What a great word. And why does mercy resonate in so many of our hearts? Simply because we all need it. Here’s one of my favorite verses in the Bible (Psalms 25: 6-7): “Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.”
That just kind of sums it up. Think about it, where would any of us be without mercy?
A fatigued conscious is very hard to live with, just ask any of the heroes of the Bible. Whether David and his adultery, Abraham and his cowardice, Moses and his murder or Paul and his misguided persecution, all were in need of God’s abundant mercy.
One of the great truths about God is that He is rich in mercy and longing to forgive. We live in a broken world, chock full of mistakes, regrets and failure. Where can we turn to find pardon, to find acceptance, we can turn to God.
The good news of salvation is predicated upon the acceptance of God’s grace and mercy.
The Bible says that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, there are no super Christians; only cracked vessels in need of mercy.
Thankfully, His mercies are new every morning.
Mercy. what a beautiful and wondrous word, and yet more importantly, what a beautiful and wondrous reality!
Take comfort battered brother/sister, God cares and is able to bring a new beginning to any and all tortured past. Just look to Him.
The Baha’is of Kaua‘i
Many of us are taught to fear “the wrath of God.” But on the other hand we are also told that God is loving and merciful. Is this a contradiction? Why should we fear God if he is loving and merciful?
In the Baha’i writings God is described both as being just and merciful, that is, he is fair, but also forgiving, compassionate. What we fear is God’s justice. When we disobey God, the consequence of God’s justice is that we distance ourselves from Him and thus create our own punishment. Though this punishment is just and fair, we can also pray for God’s mercy and forgiveness. Bahá’u’lláh, the prophet-founder of the Baha’i Faith, teaches us that as our loving and patient God, His mercy exceeds His Justice. Ultimately, there is hope for every soul for progress and forgiveness.
The following explanation from the Baha’i Writings explains the seemingly contradictory descriptions of God.
“The Divinity has many attributes: He is loving and merciful but also just. Just as reward and punishment, according to Baha’u’llah, are the pillars upon which society rests, so mercy and justice may be considered as their counterpart in the world to come. Should we disobey God and work against His commands, He will view our acts in the light of justice and punish us for it. That punishment may not be in the form of fire, as some believe, but in the form of spiritual deprivation and degradation. This is why we read so often in the prayers statements such as ‘God does not deal with us with justice, but rather through thy infinite mercy.’ The wrath of God is in the administration of His justice, both in this world and in the world to come. A God that is only loving or only just is not a perfect God. The divinity has to possess both of these aspects as every father ought to express both in his attitude towards his children. If we ponder a while, we will see that our welfare can be insured only when both of these divine attributes are equally emphasized and practiced.”
Rebecca DeRoos
Science of Mind Practitioner
A mother wheels her disabled child down the aisles of the local grocery store. Young teenagers laugh and aim rude and hurtful words at the young, disfigured child. Silently the mother moves on and whispers, “Lord have mercy upon them, they know not what they do.”
A homeless man with soiled clothes and unshaven face walks into a bank to deposit his few dollars. People stare and move away, fearing they’d touch such a man, muttering under their breath, “He must be a drug addict or an alcoholic to look that way.” He finishes his business and leaves. When outside he slowly smiles and whispers, “Lord, have mercy upon them, they know not my challenges.”
A young teenager with his old country-style clothes and cap sideways on his head walks down the hall of his new city school. Students turn around from their lockers and stare at him, laughing with rude remarks. But, he continues walking, then quietly prays, “Lord, have mercy upon them, they know not how I feel.”
Before mercy may be expressed toward another, we must first be merciful unto our own selves. For those of us who already know our inherited spirituality and have a close connection with God, it’s easy to express self-love. Showing mercy, kindness, forgiveness toward others in an immediate by-product.
But, it takes courage and practice. As “Science of Mind Magazine” contributor Rhonda Britten puts it: “Tell me the amount of time you spend being true to yourself, and I’ll tell you how much fear is affecting your ability to give and receive love.”
If there is still trouble with showing mercy toward one’s self, remember the best verse in the Bible:
“With God, all things are possible.” Matt. 19:26. And so it is with you.
Lama Tashi Dundrup
Kaua‘i Dharma Center
Mercy is having concern or compassion for self, others and our natural environment. In spiritual practice, it comes in two forms. The first is based on extending loving kindness and assistance to alleviate pain, suffering and disharmony in the world. In our tradition, this practice of compassion includes all the humans, animals and spirits in this universe, with no one left out. The second form of compassion is to train minds through meditation and other disciplines to experience and adapt to the “beyond conception” and “beyond judgement” states of mind. This is the natural, open, clear, boundless, powerful, blissful state of mind inherent in all human beings. We then incorporate this realization into our life’s activities, our death and our future rebirths in the human condition.
Pastor Wayne Patton
Anahola Baptist Church
It is a very simple sentence, but it seems to perfectly describe the biblical significance of mercy. Mary says in Luke 1:50 that “His (God’s) mercy extends to those who fear him from generation to generation.” Mary recognized that God is not only infinite, He is intimate. The same God who spoke the worlds into existence does in His mercy cheer the wounded and heal the broken in heart.
Sometimes we think of mercy and grace as being synonyms. However, grace is a word that conveys the totality of all God’s goodness toward the world, universe and us. Mercy is the special expression of God’s grace toward those who are wounded, guilty, broken-hearted and dying.
Suppose one of my children came to me and said, “Papa, I would really like to play baseball this year, but I don’t have any money for a bat, ball and glove. Will you buy them for me?” I might say, “Sure, let’s go down to the store right now.” That would be grace. Out of my own money I would be providing for his needs and giving him help and assistance.
Suppose the next day he came to me and said, ‘Papa, I got mad and swung my bat as hard as I could and released it. It flew through the air and crashed through the windshield of a police car driving down the street. The officers are at the door and they want to talk to you about it.” At that point, my child would need mercy.
Mary also said that God’s mercy extends. The word extend literally means “out stretching, to stretch out.” God reaches toward us in love, stretching out His arm of mercy. He stands on tiptoe, leaning over the railing of heaven, reaching down into our depression, despair, guilt, remorse and sinfulness. His mercy extends to those who fear Him.
The fear of the Lord is a gripping awareness of God’s majesty and power and the danger it presents to those who disrespect Him.
Just as a person’s love for the ocean is mingled with a gripping awareness of its majesty and power and the danger it presents to those who disrespect it, so it is with God.
The fear of the Lord brings into our lives wisdom, protection, love, provision, blessings, fulfilled dreams and mercy.
When we fear the Lord, the mercy of God is extended not only to us, but also to our children — from generation to generation. Upon a night long ago, God’s mercy reached out and placed a baby in a cattle stall, whose life, death, and resurrection bring life and light for all who know Him.
Kahu James Fung
Lihu‘e Christian Church
Mercy is the impulse of backing off and not coming down hard on someone who is found to have done something wrong. It’s the act of showing kindness, gentleness, understanding and softness when the harshness of punishment or reprimand is warranted. It is the initiative of a loving heart that has the capacity to bestow a measure of undeserving and unexpected grace.
The act of mercy is perhaps the greatest sign of the goodness that resides in the soul of humanity.
When the prophet of God was asked what God required from his people, wondering what an appropriate sacrifice might be, he was surprised by the prophet’s response. In the Old Testament book of Micah we read, “What does the LORD require of you — but to do justice, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8).”
What pleases God most is the manner in which we live out the ideals of our faith, exemplified in the acts of mercy, kindness and forgiveness — those same qualities that Christ revealed in his teaching and in his life.
Topic for two weeks from today
• Will you speak to us on animals?
• Spiritual leaders are invited to e-mail responses of three to five paragraphs to afrainier@thegardenisland.com.
• Deadline each week is 5 p.m. Tuesday.
